Latest news with #AlexDawson
South Wales Argus
12-05-2025
- South Wales Argus
Homeowner loses appeal over wall blocking access to Monnow
Alex Dawson appealed after being refused retrospective planning permission for the work and claimed a violation of his human rights when he was served with an enforcement notice. That required the removal of the wall and for him to lower the level of the built up ground and return it to its original condition and no longer use the area as part of the garden. Planning inspector Richard Jenkins sided with Monmouthshire County Council and said it was right to refuse planning permission for the works, that had already been completed, and issue the enforcement notice. Mr Jenkins said, in a written decision: 'I am satisfied that the refusal of planning permission would be justified and in pursuit of a legitimate planning aim, namely in the interest of exacerbating flood risks. Indeed, I am satisfied that the decision to refuse planning permission is both reasonable and proportionate and that it is, therefore, justified in light of the available evidence.' The council had, in April last year, refused an application for planning permission for a proposed first floor extension to the existing garage located to the side of Mr Dawson's home, at Monnow Keep in Monmouth while the application also sought retrospective permission for the part of the riverbank to be used as a garden and to keep the wall and fence. In May the council then issued an enforcement notice requiring the land along the bank of the river Monnow be restored and the wall and a fence removed. Mr Dawson appealed both the enforcement notice and refusal to grant planning permission to Planning and Environment Decisions Wales (PEDW). He disputed access was required by environmental body Natural Resources Wales and said there were alternatives nearby and the land is in his private ownership. Mr Dawson said restoring access would be an intrusion into his human right to protection and enjoyment of property and cause a 'significant risk' of anti-social behaviour which he said was one of the key reasons he'd replaced the gate with a wall and fence. Details of a meeting, before work started, to discuss the proposals with Natural Resources Wales were also provided to the inspector and Mr Dawson also outlined his complaint Monmouthshire council hadn't responded to his request for information before starting the work. Inspector Mr Jenkins said concern about anti-social behaviour didn't meet exceptions in Welsh planning policy to overturn restrictions on developments in flood risk areas and also said the work carried out could make flooding worse. No flood risk consequence report had been provided and Mr Jeknins said: 'Raising of ground levels and the use of retaining walls alongside a riverbank clearly has potential to displace water during a flooding event and thus increase the risk of flooding off-site.' The inspector also said he couldn't determine the dispute over ownership and rights of access but said he wasn't 'convinced' the council's notice required public access be reinstated. Monmouthshire council's May planning committee was told a notice will be issued requiring the land is restored to its former condition.
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First Post
03-05-2025
- Politics
- First Post
What's the democracy sausage, Australia's favourite election day tradition?
As Australia queued up to cast their polls on Saturday, the quirky tradition of having a 'democracy sausage' after voting was largely followed. Over the years, the snack has become a national symbol for electoral participation and part of the nation's election day culture. The phrase was even chosen as Australia's Word of the Year in 2016. But how did it become so significant? We explain read more The phrase "democracy sausage" was actually chosen as Australia's Word of the Year in 2016 and a key part of Australian election. AP In Australia, casting your vote often comes with a dash of tomato sauce, a handful of onions, and a grilled sausage wrapped in bread. As election day unfolded on Saturday, Aussies queued up to cast their votes, and what followed was a tradition that some consider just as important. Enter, 'Democracy Sausage'. These sausage sizzles, affectionately known as 'snags in bread', are spotted right outside polling booths. Over time, they've become a national, if light-heated, symbol for electoral participation. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD And it might sound quirky, but the phrase 'democracy sausage' was actually chosen as Australia's Word of the Year in 2016, proving just how firmly it's grilled into the nation's culture. 'It's practically part of the Australian Constitution,' jokes a website that tracks democracy sausage stands across the country in real time during elections. But where did this tasty tradition start? And how did it become such a central part of Australia's election day experience? Here's a closer look. Voting served on a plate At its core, the democracy sausage is exactly what it sounds like, a sausage, typically grilled on a barbecue, served on a slice of white bread with optional onions and sauce. But its meaning goes beyond the bun. These sausage sizzles are set up by local organisations like schools, sports clubs, or charities outside polling places. They're a clever way to raise funds while bringing the community together, all while voters queue up to fulfil their civic duty. Democracy sausage stalls are set up by local organisations like schools, sports clubs, or charities outside polling places. They're a clever way to raise funds while bringing the community together, all while voters queue up to fulfil their civic duty. AP And they're not just found on street corners around Melbourne or Sydney. This year, democracy sausages made their way to Australian embassies and voting centres around the world—from New York and Tokyo to Riyadh and even Antarctica. The tradition got a digital boost back in 2013, when a group of friends were trying to figure out which polling places were serving food. Since there was no easy way to find out, they created one—an apolitical, nonpartisan site called as spokesperson Alex Dawson told AP. Now, the site doesn't just map out sausage stalls—it also flags whether they've got gluten-free, vegan, or halal options, plus extras like cake and coffee. Basically, it turns voting into a mini food crawl. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'We'll usually rope in a few friends to keep an eye on incoming submissions about either stalls that we don't already know about, or tip-offs to find out if a location has run out of sausages,' Dawson said. The team always takes time out to vote—and naturally, grab a sausage too. At the 2022 election, the site logged over 2,200 sausage stalls across the country's 7,000 polling places. And those stalls pulled in about AU$4.1 million for the community groups running them. A sizzling history of the tradition No one's entirely sure who first came up with the phrase democracy sausage, but the idea of grabbing a bite while casting your ballot has deep roots in Australia's electoral history. According to Judith Brett, professor of politics at Melbourne's La Trobe University and author of From Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage: How Australia Got Compulsory Voting, fundraising snacks have been part of polling places for nearly a century. A picture from 1928, taken at the old Atherton Courthouse in Queensland, which shows women serving cakes and drinks at a polling booth—likely to raise money for their community. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Polling day at the Atherton Courthouse with women running a small tea and cake stand out the front, 1928. Image courtesy: State Library of Queensland: 7222 But what really gave the tradition legs, was the introduction of compulsory voting in 1924. With most Australians required to vote—and elections held on Saturdays—polling day quickly became a family outing. Parents show up with their kids, sometimes their dogs, and plenty of time to kill while waiting in line. In the early days, it was cakes, jams and handmade goods. But by the 1980s, the rise of the portable gas barbecue meant sausages became the crowd-pleaser of choice. Cheap, quick to cook, and deliciously nostalgic, they soon became the staple of polling places across the country. With most Australians required to vote—and elections held on Saturdays—polling day quickly became a family outing. Parents show up with their kids, sometimes their dogs, and plenty of time to kill while waiting in line. AP 'It's something that binds everyone together,' said Alex Dawson, one of the volunteers behind the popular website For younger voters and social media natives, the sausage has even helped breathe fresh life into the voting experience. 'It has been a way, I think, of connecting a younger generation, a social media generation, into the civic rituals of election day,' Brett said. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Australian Elections: An overview This year's federal election, held on Saturday, May 3, is one of the most tightly contested in recent memory. Key issues dominating the conversation include the cost of living, housing affordability, climate change policy, and an increasingly tense China-US dynamic. All 150 seats in the House of Representatives are on the line, along with 40 of the 76 Senate seats. To form a government, a party needs 76 seats. Labor currently holds 78—but thanks to a recent redistricting, one seat has been scrapped, meaning even a loss of two could tip them into minority territory. The Coalition, on the other hand, holds 57 seats and needs to flip at least 19 to take power. That includes winning back many of the seats they lost to independents last time around. As soon as the polls close, vote counting kicks off. The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) will provide real-time updates through the night. While early results can hint at the outcome, the full count,especially with nearly 18 million ballots to process, including postal and overseas votes, can take days, even weeks, to finalise. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD With input from agencies
03-05-2025
- Politics
How the democracy sausage, a polling day snack, became Australia's election symbol
WELLINGTON, New Zealand -- Many Australians arriving at polling places on Saturday followed their civic duty by eating what's become known as a democracy sausage, a cultural tradition as Aussie as koalas and Vegemite, and for some just as important as casting their vote. The grilled sausage wrapped in a slice of white bread and often topped with onions and ketchup is a regular fixture of Antipodean public life. But when offered at polling places on election day, the humble treat is elevated to a democracy sausage — a national, if light-heated, symbol for electoral participation. Or, as a website tracking real-time, crowd-sourced democracy sausage locations on polling day notes: 'It's practically part of the Australian Constitution.' But the tradition is far from political. Cooking and selling the snacks outside polling places is the most lucrative fundraising event of the year for many school and community groups. Democracy sausages are served everywhere Australians vote. Ahead of Saturday's ballot, and on election day, they were due to appear at polling places for citizens abroad on nearly every continent — at Australian embassies in New York, Riyadh, Nairobi and Tokyo, and even at a research station in Antarctica. The friends who run the apolitical and nonpartisan website began the project in 2013, when they struggled to find information about which polling places would offer food on election day, spokesperson Alex Dawson told The Associated Press. Now Dawson and his friends help voters choose their polling place with a site that has expanded to catalogue details of gluten free, vegan and halal democracy sausage options, and the availability of other treats such as cake and coffee. It makes for a hectic election day. 'We'll usually rope in a few friends to keep an eye on incoming submissions about either stalls that we don't already know about, or tip-offs to find out if a location has run out of sausages,' Dawson said. The volunteers take a lunchtime break to cast their own votes, and, naturally, enjoy a democracy sausage. At the 2022 election, the website registered 2,200 of Australia's 7,000 polling places as serving democracy sausages or other snacks and Dawson expected at least that number would participate on Saturday. Groups running the stalls made $4.1 million Australian dollars ($2.6 million) in profits in 2022, he said. No one's sure who coined the term democracy sausage. But fundraising snacks have been served at Australia's voting booths for close to a century, said Judith Brett, a professor of politics at Melbourne's LaTrobe University and author of the book 'From Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage: How Australia Got Compulsory Voting.' What began with polling place bake sales in the 1920s became election day sausage sizzles in the 1980s with the invention of the portable barbeque grill. The democracy sausage's success is partly because of how Australia votes. Elections always occur on Saturdays and are family affairs — voters arrive with their children and dogs. And turning up to vote is required by law, resulting in turnouts higher than 90% and ensuring a captive market for democracy sausage sales. Brett attributed the sausage's appeal to the Australian sense of humor — 'It was a bit of a joke,' she said — and its grassroots origins. 'Government didn't think it up, a political party didn't think it up as a slogan,' she added. 'It's something that binds everyone together,' Dawson said. In 2016, the Australian National Dictionary Centre named 'democracy sausage' as its word of the year. The sausage has also proved a political cipher, a way for aspiring leaders to show they're humble enough to consume a cheap piece of meat wrapped in bread, at times with mixed results. Photographs of politicians eating democracy sausages in bizarre and ungainly ways have become memes or episodes of Australian political folklore. 'It has been a way, I think, of connecting a younger generation, a social media generation, into the civic rituals of election day,' Brett said. Some commentators suggest that early voting could spell the end for the democracy sausage. More than 4 million Australians went to the polls before election day, a new record. But Dawson said he wasn't worried, because those who voted early could still drop by a polling place on Saturday to buy a snack. 'We've heard reports of people who are tourists over here, foreign students, that will go along to election days just to get the sausages,' he added. 'I think that's a great piece of Australian culture for people to take home with them.'
Hamilton Spectator
03-05-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
How the democracy sausage, a polling day snack, became Australia's election symbol
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Many Australians arriving at polling places on Saturday followed their civic duty by eating what's become known as a democracy sausage, a cultural tradition as Aussie as koalas and Vegemite, and for some just as important as casting their vote. The grilled sausage wrapped in a slice of white bread and often topped with onions and ketchup is a regular fixture of Antipodean public life. But when offered at polling places on election day , the humble treat is elevated to a democracy sausage — a national, if light-heated, symbol for electoral participation. Or, as a website tracking real-time, crowd-sourced democracy sausage locations on polling day notes: 'It's practically part of the Australian Constitution.' But the tradition is far from political. Cooking and selling the snacks outside polling places is the most lucrative fundraising event of the year for many school and community groups. Democracy sausages are served everywhere Australians vote. Ahead of Saturday's ballot, and on election day, they were due to appear at polling places for citizens abroad on nearly every continent — at Australian embassies in New York, Riyadh, Nairobi and Tokyo, and even at a research station in Antarctica. Informing voters (about sausages) The friends who run the apolitical and nonpartisan website began the project in 2013, when they struggled to find information about which polling places would offer food on election day, spokesperson Alex Dawson told The Associated Press. Now Dawson and his friends help voters choose their polling place with a site that has expanded to catalogue details of gluten free, vegan and halal democracy sausage options, and the availability of other treats such as cake and coffee. It makes for a hectic election day. 'We'll usually rope in a few friends to keep an eye on incoming submissions about either stalls that we don't already know about, or tip-offs to find out if a location has run out of sausages,' Dawson said. The volunteers take a lunchtime break to cast their own votes, and, naturally, enjoy a democracy sausage. At the 2022 election, the website registered 2,200 of Australia's 7,000 polling places as serving democracy sausages or other snacks and Dawson expected at least that number would participate on Saturday. Groups running the stalls made $4.1 million Australian dollars ($2.6 million) in profits in 2022, he said. 'A bit of a joke' No one's sure who coined the term democracy sausage. But fundraising snacks have been served at Australia's voting booths for close to a century, said Judith Brett, a professor of politics at Melbourne's LaTrobe University and author of the book 'From Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage: How Australia Got Compulsory Voting.' What began with polling place bake sales in the 1920s became election day sausage sizzles in the 1980s with the invention of the portable barbeque grill. The democracy sausage's success is partly because of how Australia votes. Elections always occur on Saturdays and are family affairs — voters arrive with their children and dogs. And turning up to vote is required by law, resulting in turnouts higher than 90% and ensuring a captive market for democracy sausage sales. Brett attributed the sausage's appeal to the Australian sense of humor — 'It was a bit of a joke,' she said — and its grassroots origins. 'Government didn't think it up, a political party didn't think it up as a slogan,' she added. 'It's something that binds everyone together,' Dawson said. In 2016, the Australian National Dictionary Centre named 'democracy sausage' as its word of the year. A cultural tradition The sausage has also proved a political cipher, a way for aspiring leaders to show they're humble enough to consume a cheap piece of meat wrapped in bread, at times with mixed results. Photographs of politicians eating democracy sausages in bizarre and ungainly ways have become memes or episodes of Australian political folklore. 'It has been a way, I think, of connecting a younger generation, a social media generation, into the civic rituals of election day,' Brett said. Some commentators suggest that early voting could spell the end for the democracy sausage. More than 4 million Australians went to the polls before election day, a new record. But Dawson said he wasn't worried, because those who voted early could still drop by a polling place on Saturday to buy a snack. 'We've heard reports of people who are tourists over here, foreign students, that will go along to election days just to get the sausages,' he added. 'I think that's a great piece of Australian culture for people to take home with them.'
Winnipeg Free Press
03-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
How the democracy sausage, a polling day snack, became Australia's election symbol
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Many Australians arriving at polling places on Saturday followed their civic duty by eating what's become known as a democracy sausage, a cultural tradition as Aussie as koalas and Vegemite, and for some just as important as casting their vote. The grilled sausage wrapped in a slice of white bread and often topped with onions and ketchup is a regular fixture of Antipodean public life. But when offered at polling places on election day, the humble treat is elevated to a democracy sausage — a national, if light-heated, symbol for electoral participation. Or, as a website tracking real-time, crowd-sourced democracy sausage locations on polling day notes: 'It's practically part of the Australian Constitution.' But the tradition is far from political. Cooking and selling the snacks outside polling places is the most lucrative fundraising event of the year for many school and community groups. Democracy sausages are served everywhere Australians vote. Ahead of Saturday's ballot, and on election day, they were due to appear at polling places for citizens abroad on nearly every continent — at Australian embassies in New York, Riyadh, Nairobi and Tokyo, and even at a research station in Antarctica. Informing voters (about sausages) The friends who run the apolitical and nonpartisan website began the project in 2013, when they struggled to find information about which polling places would offer food on election day, spokesperson Alex Dawson told The Associated Press. Now Dawson and his friends help voters choose their polling place with a site that has expanded to catalogue details of gluten free, vegan and halal democracy sausage options, and the availability of other treats such as cake and coffee. It makes for a hectic election day. 'We'll usually rope in a few friends to keep an eye on incoming submissions about either stalls that we don't already know about, or tip-offs to find out if a location has run out of sausages,' Dawson said. The volunteers take a lunchtime break to cast their own votes, and, naturally, enjoy a democracy sausage. At the 2022 election, the website registered 2,200 of Australia's 7,000 polling places as serving democracy sausages or other snacks and Dawson expected at least that number would participate on Saturday. Groups running the stalls made $4.1 million Australian dollars ($2.6 million) in profits in 2022, he said. 'A bit of a joke' No one's sure who coined the term democracy sausage. But fundraising snacks have been served at Australia's voting booths for close to a century, said Judith Brett, a professor of politics at Melbourne's LaTrobe University and author of the book 'From Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage: How Australia Got Compulsory Voting.' What began with polling place bake sales in the 1920s became election day sausage sizzles in the 1980s with the invention of the portable barbeque grill. The democracy sausage's success is partly because of how Australia votes. Elections always occur on Saturdays and are family affairs — voters arrive with their children and dogs. And turning up to vote is required by law, resulting in turnouts higher than 90% and ensuring a captive market for democracy sausage sales. Brett attributed the sausage's appeal to the Australian sense of humor — 'It was a bit of a joke,' she said — and its grassroots origins. 'Government didn't think it up, a political party didn't think it up as a slogan,' she added. 'It's something that binds everyone together,' Dawson said. In 2016, the Australian National Dictionary Centre named 'democracy sausage' as its word of the year. Wednesdays A weekly look towards a post-pandemic future. A cultural tradition The sausage has also proved a political cipher, a way for aspiring leaders to show they're humble enough to consume a cheap piece of meat wrapped in bread, at times with mixed results. Photographs of politicians eating democracy sausages in bizarre and ungainly ways have become memes or episodes of Australian political folklore. 'It has been a way, I think, of connecting a younger generation, a social media generation, into the civic rituals of election day,' Brett said. Some commentators suggest that early voting could spell the end for the democracy sausage. More than 4 million Australians went to the polls before election day, a new record. But Dawson said he wasn't worried, because those who voted early could still drop by a polling place on Saturday to buy a snack. 'We've heard reports of people who are tourists over here, foreign students, that will go along to election days just to get the sausages,' he added. 'I think that's a great piece of Australian culture for people to take home with them.'
